The Best Ron Howard Movies Ranked And Where to Watch them

If you're looking for the best Ron Howard movies of all time then here is a definitive list. We rank every movie directed by Ron Howard based on their popularity score from IMDB from best to worst. Click on the ‘see more’ button to find out where to watch them in Australia covering all streaming services. In April 2024 there are 30 films in this list.

List of the Best Movies Directed by Ron Howard In Order of Popularity

  1. A Beautiful Mind
  2. Rush
  3. Cinderella Man
  4. The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years
  5. Thirteen Lives
  6. Apollo 13
  7. Frost/Nixon
  8. Pavarotti
  9. We Feed People
  10. Willow
  11. Parenthood
  12. Rebuilding Paradise
  13. In the Heart of the Sea
  14. Solo: A Star Wars Story
  15. Ransom
  16. Hillbilly Elegy
  17. Angels & Demons
  18. Backdraft
  19. The Paper
  20. The Da Vinci Code
  21. Far and Away
  22. The Missing
  23. Night Shift
  24. Splash
  25. Gung Ho
  26. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
  27. Inferno
  28. Edtv
  29. The Dilemma
  30. Made in America

Stream the top 30 Movies directed by Ron Howard

1. A Beautiful Mind

Rated: PG-13

8.2/10

John Nash is a brilliant but asocial mathematician fighting schizophrenia. After he accepts secret work in cryptography, his life takes a turn for the nightmarish.

2. Rush

Rated: R

8.1/10

Charismatic Englishman James Hunt and Austrian perfectionist Niki Lauda burn up the 1970s Formula 1 racing scene and share an intense rivalry on the track.

3. Cinderella Man

Rated: PG-13

8.0/10

The true story of boxer Jim Braddock who, in the 1920s following his retirement, makes a surprise comeback in order to get him and his family out of a socially poor state.

4. The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years

Rated: Unrated

7.8/10

The Beatles stormed through Europe's music scene in 1963, and, in 1964, they conquered America. Their groundbreaking world tours changed global youth culture forever and, arguably, invented mass entertainment as we know it today. All the while, the group were composing and recording a series of extraordinarily successful singles and albums. However the relentless pressure of such unprecedented fame, that in 1966 became uncontrollable turmoil, led to the decision to stop touring. In the ensuing years The Beatles were then free to focus on a series of albums that changed the face of recorded music.

5. Thirteen Lives

Rated: M

7.8/10

Based on the true nail-biting mission that captivated the world. Twelve boys and the coach of a Thai soccer team explore the Tham Luang cave when an unexpected rainstorm traps them in a chamber inside the mountain. Entombed behind a maze of flooded cave tunnels, they face impossible odds. A team of world-class divers navigate through miles of dangerous cave networks to discover that finding the boys is only the beginning.

6. Apollo 13

Rated: PG

7.7/10

The true story of technical troubles that scuttle the Apollo 13 lunar mission in 1970, risking the lives of astronaut Jim Lovell and his crew, with the failed journey turning into a thrilling saga of heroism. Drifting more than 200,000 miles from Earth, the astronauts work furiously with the ground crew to avert tragedy.

7. Frost/Nixon

Rated: R

7.7/10

For three years after being forced from office, Nixon remained silent. But in summer 1977, the steely, cunning former commander-in-chief agreed to sit for one all-inclusive interview to confront the questions of his time in office and the Watergate scandal that ended his presidency. Nixon surprised everyone in selecting Frost as his televised confessor, intending to easily outfox the breezy British showman and secure a place in the hearts and minds of Americans. Likewise, Frost's team harboured doubts about their boss's ability to hold his own. But as the cameras rolled, a charged battle of wits resulted.

8. Pavarotti

Rated: PG-13

7.5/10

Featuring never-before-seen footage, concert performances and intimate interviews, filmmaker Ron Howard examines the life and career of famed opera tenor Luciano Pavarotti.

9. We Feed People

Rated: N/A

7.4/10

We Feed People spotlights renowned chef José Andrés and his nonprofit World Central Kitchen’s incredible mission and evolution over 12 years from being a scrappy group of grassroots volunteers to becoming one of the most highly regarded humanitarian aid organizations in the disaster relief sector.

10. Willow

Rated: PG

7.2/10

The evil Queen Bavmorda hunts the newborn princess Elora Danan, a child prophesied to bring about her downfall. When the royal infant is found by Willow, a timid farmer and aspiring sorcerer, he's entrusted with delivering her from evil.

11. Parenthood

Rated: PG-13

7.1/10

The story of the Buckman family and friends, attempting to bring up their children. They suffer/enjoy all the events that occur: estranged relatives, the 'black sheep' of the family, the eccentrics, the skeletons in the closet, and the rebellious teenagers.

12. Rebuilding Paradise

Rated: PG-13

7.0/10

​On November 8, 2018, a spark flew in the Sierra Nevada foothills, igniting the most destructive wildfire in California history and decimating the town of Paradise. Unfolding during the year after the fire, this is the story of the Paradise community as they begin to rebuild their lives.

13. In the Heart of the Sea

Rated: PG-13

6.9/10

In the winter of 1820, the New England whaling ship Essex is assaulted by something no one could believe—a whale of mammoth size and will, and an almost human sense of vengeance.

14. Solo: A Star Wars Story

Rated: PG-13

6.9/10

Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future copilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian.

15. Ransom

Rated: R

6.7/10

Tom Mullen, the millionaire owner of a major airline, has his world turned upside down when he learns he is the only one who can save his kidnapped son's life.

16. Hillbilly Elegy

Rated: R

6.7/10

An urgent phone call pulls a Yale Law student back to his Ohio hometown, where he reflects on three generations of family history and his own future.

17. Angels & Demons

Rated: PG-13

6.7/10

Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is called in to save Vatican City from being incinerated by an ancient sect.

18. Backdraft

Rated: R

6.7/10

Firemen brothers Brian and Stephen McCaffrey battle each other over past slights while trying to stop an arsonist with a diabolical agenda from torching Chicago.

19. The Paper

Rated: R

6.7/10

Henry Hackett is the workaholic editor of a New York City tabloid. He loves his job, but the long hours and low pay are leading to discontent. Also, publisher Bernie White faces financial straits, and has hatchet-man Alicia Clark—Henry's nemesis—impose unpopular cutbacks.

20. The Da Vinci Code

Rated: PG-13

6.6/10

A murder in Paris’ Louvre Museum and cryptic clues in some of Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous paintings lead to the discovery of a religious mystery. For 2,000 years a secret society closely guards information that — should it come to light — could rock the very foundations of Christianity.

21. Far and Away

Rated: PG-13

6.6/10

A young man leaves Ireland with his landlord's daughter after some trouble with her father, and they dream of owning land at the big giveaway in Oklahoma ca. 1893. When they get to the new land, they find jobs and begin saving money. The man becomes a local barehands boxer, and rides in glory until he is beaten, then his employers steal all the couple's money and they must fight off starvation in the winter, and try to keep their dream of owning land alive. Meanwhile, the woman's parents find out where she has gone and have come to America to find her and take her back.

22. The Missing

Rated: R

6.5/10

When rancher and single mother of two Maggie Gilkeson sees her teenage daughter, Lily, kidnapped by Apache rebels, she reluctantly accepts the help of her estranged father, Samuel, in tracking down the kidnappers. Along the way, the two must learn to reconcile the past and work together if they are going to have any hope of getting Lily back before she is taken over the border and forced to become a prostitute.

23. Night Shift

Rated: R

6.5/10

A nebbish of a morgue attendant gets shunted back to the night shift where he is shackled with an obnoxious neophyte partner who dreams of the "one great idea" for success. His life takes a bizarre turn when a prostitute neighbour complains about the loss of her pimp. His partner, upon hearing the situation, suggests that they fill that opening themselves using the morgue at night .

24. Splash

Rated: PG

6.3/10

A successful businessman falls in love with the girl of his dreams. There's one big complication though; he's fallen hook, line and sinker for a mermaid.

25. Gung Ho

Rated: PG-13

6.3/10

When a western Pennsylvania auto plant is acquired by a Japanese company, brokering auto worker Hunt Stevenson faces the tricky challenge of mediating the assimilation of two clashing corporate cultures. At one end is the Japanese plant manager and the sycophant who is angling for his position. At the other, a number of disgruntled long-time union members struggle with the new exigencies of Japanese quality control.

26. How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Rated: PG

6.3/10

Inside a snowflake exists the magical land of Whoville. In Whoville, live the Whos, an almost mutated sort of Munchkin-like people. All the Whos love Christmas, yet just outside of their beloved Whoville lives the Grinch. The Grinch is a nasty creature that hates Christmas, and plots to steal it away from the Whos, whom he equally abhors. Yet a small child, Cindy Lou Who, decides to try befriending the Grinch.

27. Inferno

Rated: PG-13

6.2/10

After waking up in a hospital with amnesia, professor Robert Langdon and a doctor must race against time to foil a deadly global plot.

28. Edtv

Rated: PG-13

6.1/10

Video store clerk Ed agrees to have his life filmed by a camera crew for a tv network.

29. The Dilemma

Rated: PG-13

5.3/10

Longtime friends Ronny and Nick are partners in an auto-design firm. They are hard at work on a presentation for a dream project that would really launch their company. Then Ronny spots Nick's wife out with another man, and in the process of investigating the possible affair, he learns that Nick has a few secrets of his own. As the presentation nears, Ronny agonizes over what might happen if the truth gets out.

30. Made in America

Rated: M

5.1/10

Hip-hop artist Jay-Z organizes the "Budweiser Made In America" music festival.